Longtime NBA veteran Clifford Robinson has died at 53
Clifford Robinson, an 18-year NBA veteran, has died, the University of Connecticut men's basketball program confirmed Saturday. He was 53. The cause of death was not immediately known, but Robinson had dealt with health issues in recent years, suffering a stroke in 2017 and having a tumor removed from his jaw in 2018.
Robinson starred at UConn and helped bring them to prominence in the days before they became a basketball powerhouse. The Huskies won the National Invitation Tournament in 1988 with Robinson. UConn retired Robinson's jersey in 2007. "He was our first great player," former UConn head coach Jim Calhoun said, adding that Robinson "was a good man, had a great career, and was instrumental in a lot of the great things that happened at UConn."
Picked in the second round of the 1989 NBA draft by the Portland Trail Blazers, Robinson enjoyed a long and fruitful career in the NBA. He spent eight seasons in Portland, and suited up for the Phoenix Suns, Detroit Pistons, Golden State Warriors, and the then-New Jersey Nets. His brightest years, though, came with the Blazers — in 1993 he won the Sixth Man of the Year Award and followed that up with an All-Star appearance in 1994.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.
-
'Colleges warn of punishment for disruptions'
Today's Newspapers A roundup of the headlines from the US front pages
By The Week Staff Published
-
Peter Murrell: Sturgeon's husband charged over SNP 'embezzlement' claims
Speed Read SNP expresses 'shock' as former chief executive rearrested in long-running investigation into claims of mishandled campaign funds
By Arion McNicoll, The Week UK Published
-
The murky role of military contractors in war
The Explainer A civil case against US company has revived debate over the increasing use of private security firms in military operations
By Richard Windsor, The Week UK Published
-
Caitlin Clark the No. 1 pick in bullish WNBA Draft
Speed Read As expected, she went to the Indiana Fever
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
South Carolina ends perfect season with NCAA title
Speed Read The women's basketball team won a victory over superstar Caitlin Clark's Iowa Hawkeyes
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Iowa's Caitlin Clark breaks NCAA scoring record
speed read College basketball star Caitlin Clark set the new record in Iowa's defeat of Ohio State
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Eight-year-old Brit Bodhana Sivanandan makes chess history
Speed Read Sivanandan has been described as a 'phenomenon' by chess masters
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
Watch Simone Biles win her record 8th US gymnastics championship
Speed Read
By Peter Weber Published
-
Spain beats England 1-0 to win its first Women's World Cup
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published
-
US knocked out of Women's World Cup in stunning exit
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published
-
Katie Ledecky surpasses Michael Phelps for most world championship titles
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published